Reading is a lifestyle.
Ever since I developed my love for reading, my relationship with books has been very intimate. As a passionate reader, I couldn’t merely finish reading a book and put it aside. No, there’s a whole ritual involved: going to the bookstore, smelling the incomparable smell of a new book, touching its spine – a lover caress, assessing its back cover, only then to purchase it and take it home.
The courtship takes a while, even though the new book is now in my possession, I still need to introduce it to my bookshelf with hundreds of books in it. Welcome home, luv. We’re family now.
Once I decide to read it, I carry it with me wherever I go. Knowing it is there with me is enough.
I always start by reading the copyrights and the cataloging details, I read the dedication, the acknowledgments, and whatever other part the author has displayed for us.
Turning the pages, experiencing each word as the story unfolds in my imagination, sharing the characters feelings… It’s a lifestyle.
Once I finish reading the book, I hug it tightly, thanking it for our wonderful time together. Then I carefully put it back to its new place on my shelf.
Ever since I moved though, I’ve been away from my books, from my precious collection. At first I thought it would be unbearable, however, I found out this awesome thing called, wait for it, library.
Because I was so possessive about my books and because I love rereading a story, I preferred to buy a book rather than borrow it.
Living in Montreal changed that for me. And I can honestly say that I’m loving the experience as well.
I still go through the process of courting my next read, selecting it from the thousands of books available at the public library (which is only a few minutes from my apartment), taking it home with me and carrying it around when I leave the house.
But because I cannot keep it once I finish reading it, I’ve started making reviews, writing down my experience with each book. Luckily, I have just the journal for it, which was given to me by one of my aunts.
My love for books has only grown and so has my appreciation for the book market, from authors to publishers, from bookstores to libraries, from me to my readers.
Now tell me, what’s your relationship with books?
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